The New Beetle, the Old Memories

Re Paul Dean’s review, “The New Beetle: 23 Smiles Per Gallon” (Feb. 19): I moved to Southern California in 1968 at a time when the Volkswagen Beetle was truly the “in” car. Its owners defended the product with a religion-like fervor. They tended to be an independent, rebellious crowd who reveled in their intellectual choice. Beetle ownership wasn’t a product selection, it was a philosophical statement.

In those days Everyman paid the same for his Beetle--the suggested retail price. The car proved to be worth it. It was a great idea and it worked. It was also a welcome relief from the frantic world of the Ralph Wilson / Cal Worthington school of automotive retailing. That was then.

This is now. No matter how pure their evangelism, Volkswagen cannot re-create the past. The real Beetle was rear wheel drive, rear engine and air-cooled. The faux Beetle is front wheel drive, front engine and liquid-cooled--and about 10 times the price of the original. The old maxim used to be: “It’s ugly but it gets you there.” The new maxim should be: “It’s ugly but it’s also expensive.”

I’m inclined to believe that the car will get off to a fast start but, by the turn of the century, will be sitting in dealer stocks like sinners at the girlie show.

TOM CONLEY

Fullerton

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I read with glee and hilarious laughter the delightful column written by Paul Dean about the new Volkswagen Beetle making its debut this April.

It did bring back memories of the older version, the one that wouldn’t go more than 62 miles per hour. My family had one of those, and one day while driving on a country road, I saw a pickup truck barreling toward me while passing. I pulled sharply to the right--and almost turned that little Beetle over. We ended up in a field, but with the wheels under me.

Then there was the time my high-school-age son and a friend got stuck in the mud when parking off the street. They just got out and the two of them lifted that little Beetle right back into the street. I wonder if this new one will allow such a maneuver.

I must take issue with Dean about the babies born in the older version. Perhaps. But then he makes the remark that he did not know how many may have been conceived in the Beetle. Now that would be an impossibility.

Keep Mr. Dean on the payroll, please. His columns are a real delight.

ANN A. REINER

San Diego

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What Denis Horgan has to say about the Volkswagen Beetle is of little consequence (“The Revisionism Really Bugs Him,” Feb. 19). Sure, the Beetle is an uncomfortable ride, but that’s precisely the point.

Since its debut in 1934, it has been as much a political statement as a means of transportation. It is a statement against mindless materialism and crackpot consumerism, which makes it sort of a magical ride, because it’s the closest thing to a free ride there is.

The resurrection of the Beetle annoys baby boomers because it reminds them of a time when they could lay claim to that divine state of mind. When they sold their Beetles, they sold out.

ARNO KEKS

El Monte